The Basics // Tools for Snapchat

Snapchat has a vibe – there is no other way I can put this.

The greatest thing you can take away from this article, to understand how dynamic Snapchat is – is that it is low-key.

See, Snapchat doesn’t compete, it just does its own thing, and from a millennial in the words of millennials, it slays at being a platform that is intuitive and organic.

From a business standpoint, if you have the momentum and personality to build a Snapchat audience then here are some top tools to take your snapping to the next level.

Set up your Bitmoji

Bitmoji is your personal, characterised and expressive emoji.It is set up through the Bitmoji app and can be linked to your keyboard but most importantly to your Snapcode. Your Snapcode works like a QR reader and your Bitmoji personalises your presence on the platform especially when other followers begin to chat with you on Snapchat. Personality is a big part of this platform, and Bitmoji is your first step to creating that personable presence – it is about the vibe.

Ghostcodes

One thing Snapchat has always been criticised for is that it doesn’t have a discover feature. Yes, this often does limit the organic growth of your followers but fear not Ghostcodes is like the Instagram for your Snapchat where other snappers can discover you and add you directly via your Snapcode.The app tells you how many people have downloaded your Snapcode and how may have liked your profile – this is something your viewers see too.What I like about this app is that it categorises you which enables you to be discovered by people in similar niches.I often change my category depending on what I am predominantly during the week, for example, I would change it to Fashion during Fashion week, and this allows me to attract more people.

It also allows you to discover other snappers which are great in many ways; one way is shoutouts – your vibe attracts your tribe and collaborating with other influencers on the same platform enables you to grow even more. Besides your Snapchat, you can also link your other social media accounts which is great.

Paperclip

This is where Snapchat is low-key and great at playing the monopoly. Paperclip is a function that allows you to link your Snapchat to a website – users are then able to easily swipe up within the app and visit your website.

On Instagram, Story Paperclip is only available to users with over 10 thousand followers while on Snapchat it is available to every user, and it is fantastic. It is personal monetisation at its best with the niche part of your audience that chooses to follow you on a platform where you aren’t as easily discoverable as Facebook or Instagram – that’s quality conversion right there.

Our Story

Contributing to the main Snapchat Stories “Our Story” is easy and can get you many eyeballs.Now, this works on various levels. You can use a geo-filter that will add your story to “Our Story” from the area which is similar to Instagram Stories.On the left, I snapped about the famous Mayweather and McGregor fight, while adding it to my story, I also tapped the “Our Story” option, and it went up as an option under that tab. The story doesn’t start trending immediately if you choose this option. Snapchat screens the snaps and curates the stories so your snap may or may not get picked up. As you can see I contributed two snaps here, but only one got picked up which within 5 hours reached just over a thousand people across four global stories.

Via Quora

This story started trending within the first hour of it being live under the following location and lifestyle “Our Story.” And Snapchat tells you where it is featured and how many times it is seen.

Geofence, Geo-filters and custom filters

This is where Snapchat is really changing the game. With a single tap, you can create your Geo Story which becomes a user-generated Snapchat story. This is fantastic for personal or business use – literally taking Birthday social media to the next level.

From a business standpoint, you can take this to the next level and invest in location tags, geo-filters, and custom filters.

There are various levels- some are free, and some are sponsored. It really depends on what you are trying to achieve – whether it is for an event or for an everyday tag.

Sameera is a Social Media Strategist and Digital Content Manager. My passions lie strongly in influencer relations + digital strategy. I thrive on creating campaigns for brands and purposefully harnessing the power that influencer’s can bring to a marketing plan.